]]>My weekly gratitude post, in the Celebrate the Small Things [ongoing] Blog Hop.

I’m grateful for fun trimming the tree, which I usually don’t find fun at all.

I’m thankful the best shrimp I’ve ever eaten, fresh from the coast!

I’m thankful for good friends and family.

I’m thrilled to have completed several new pieces of art, which I hope to list in a totally new category on Etsy, very soon!

What are you grateful for this week? How will you show thanks? Who is grateful for you? I am!

This post is part of Lexa Cain’s blog hop, Celebrate the Small Things, along with her co-hostesses L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Participate by emailing laura.6eg(at)gmail.com to request to hop on, then post your gratitude every Friday. Easiest blog hop ever! Thanks for coming with me on this journey of self-empowerment and collective awareness.

Fifteen years

Those are hard calculations, and I’m not a linear person. There’s a point, though, that a thing drags on well passed its welcome, and I have to notice it isn’t getting better. I have to do the accounting. What perpetually shocked me in all this time is the number of doctors who didn’t.

In the teaching medical community is the phrase, “When you hear hoof beats, think of horses, not zebras.” It means look for the obvious diagnosis, and that’s all.

Fifteen years of hoof beats.

One hour

In October, in a riot of last-ditch angst, I saw a new neurologist. I spent one hour with him, and in that time he not only nailed the diagnosis that encompasses the vast majority of every symptom I’ve had in the last fifteen+ years, he quieted a long restlessness I’d accepted as normal.

I cried.

Right there in his office, I sobbed, because every cell in my body knew he was right. Because I felt a weight lift from my shoulders. Because he listened. Most specifically because he said, “You’re a nice young woman, and I’m sorry you’ve been in so much pain for so long.”

He said it on purpose, likely because he deals with a lot of un-diagnosable patients. He deals with people, particularly women, who have miserably fallen through the cracks of the system for years. Over and over he hears stories of other doctors missing the mark. He knew exactly what to say to tap into the fact that I needed to hear someone acknowledge this is real. This has been happening, every day. I needed to hear a doctor acknowledge that fact.

I needed a doctor to honor my humanity, not just diagnose my condition, and he did both.

Past all the angst, anger, blood work, and scans, are Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia and Ehlers- Danlos Syndrome. Neither will kill me, they will just make the everyday fairly unpleasant. There’s no cure, no treatment, only suggestions–most of which I’ve already been doing for years.

So, nothing is different, except that it is. I now know what I’m dealing with. I know what my boundaries are, and what I’m up against to enforce them. I can’t say that I’m enthusiastic about it, or that I have a great attitude with how to go forward.

]]>1Kelley Harrellhttp://www.kelleyharrell.comhttp://www.soulintentarts.com/?p=89612016-12-05T12:19:22Z2016-12-05T10:35:46ZFor the week of 4 December 2016 In which motivation is of the essence. Isa is the half-month rune through 13 December. Uruz reversed is the intuitive...

Isa is the half-month rune through 13 December. Uruz reversed is the intuitive stave, and Mannaz indicates the planet’s needs. Read right to left is Isa, then Uruz reversed, followed by Mannaz.

The half-month rune is set by the runic calendar, and governs for a tad over two weeks. The intuitive stave (meaning, I draw it blind) indicates the life force most available to us, which brings the focus of the half-month rune into sharper focus for the present week. It suggests how we can handle these energies. The planetary stave indicates the state and possibly needs of the planet.

Following is a summary of The Weekly Rune. Read the full runecast for more details on how these runes impact human life force over the next week, and how to best manage the curves and twists.

Last week, Isa set in motion an evolution of events that will culminate by May of 2017. Focused on the proper cultivation of new consciousness, this last of the winter staves comes with a walk don’t run energy. Indeed, nourishment of the sacred seed can’t be rushed. It is the epitome of trusting right time, right place, right action. Nothing about this rune can be forced, coerced, or quelled.

Remember that sitting still requires as much effort as motion. Such is the mantra of this week.

The life force of the next week is characterized by an intense need to come into the fact that the personal truth bubbling to the surface right now must be thoroughly allowed. We don’t have to understand what it is just yet, though if we do, that insight can soothe the tension around restraint. Still, blatantly clear insight into that truth isn’t a green light to do anything with it, yet. Pausing, allowing its process to unfold in its own time–that’s the emphasis for now.

Think about it: freezing has to happen in order for chaff to die off, for new life to have space, nutrients, and motivation to form, to grow. In Nature’s cycle, what comes from that seemingly restful state of shaping doesn’t become apparent until the following spring. As the plant and animal life hibernates and comes back to life in warm weather, so do we. This is the trend Isa speaks of.

Uruz reversed only complicates feelings of tension around Isa’s frozen state. These two staves have a curious, though not evident connection. Read the Elder Futhark in terms of the Old Norse creation story, and it quickly becomes apparent that the elements–key characters in the narrative–are out of balance. When we think of elements, through our modern and often melting pot perspective, we think in terms of water, fire, air, and earth, with the occasional wood and metal thrown in. In the Old Norse observation, there was only fire and ice. In terms of the futhark, there’s a great deal of fire in the first ætt, with only a bit of ice (Uruz). This is significant, in that in the creation story, Muspelheimr existed first–the land of fire. Only when the icy run off of the rivers of Niflheimr–the land of ice–met Muspelheimr did creation as we know it occur. However, it isn’t until we get to the second ætt, that we’re greeted by an equivalent amount of ice. That correlation between Uruz as the only icy stave in the first ætt, then skipping all the way to the deluge of the winter trio of the second ætt reveals the need of motivation for the sacred seed (Isa) to be positioned well in order to form.

Generally an indicator of the drive to self-start, to self-motivate, and have the elements in place to do just that, Uruz reversed brings a different dynamic. It can indicate a molasses rolling downhill sort of lethargy, or it may point to a place in which energy is being misdirected. Either way, a vital misallocation of life force is ripe to occur, though we can be attentive to it. We can be aware of where we are most likely to misguide ourselves, and stay cautious about the places that surprise us. Keep in mind Uruz is about the creative force, and not what is created. For now, that’s Isa.

This week, we’re not well-positioned to form our personal truth, and we need to be impeccably aware of that fact. Monitor motives, and practice radical honesty. Ultimately, Uruz reversed is a cul-de-sac of creative force. It isn’t gone or lacking; rather, it’s not flowing on the plane it would like. I suspect like Isa’s incubation of personal truth, this realignment of life force and focus can’t be manhandled into right direction. Feelings of hurry up and stop will be rampant this week.

Instead of measuring progress, focus on its source.

Mannaz may help with locating that source. The planet’s message this week is to get out. Do new things. Avoid falling into a rut. Remember, Mannaz is the mid-point of Isa manifest. It is the point that the sacred seed outgrows its protective shell and must go out into the world. This week seek new social engagements and groups. The regular old interactions will not reinforce what’s needed to know about where all of this is going. They will not draw out what must be innate to nurture.

It’s going to be hard to put one foot in front of the other, this week. However, so much can be accomplished standing still. Embody that best of that stillness, and see what it has to share.

]]>0Kelley Harrellhttp://www.kelleyharrell.comhttp://www.soulintentarts.com/?p=89362016-11-28T17:07:13Z2016-12-02T10:35:15ZMy weekly gratitude post, in the Celebrate the Small Things [ongoing] Blog Hop. I’m grateful for a great weekend with family and friends. I’m thankful for my...

]]>My weekly gratitude post, in the Celebrate the Small Things [ongoing] Blog Hop.

I’m grateful for a great weekend with family and friends.

I’m thankful for my daughter feeling better.

I’m thankful for having good coping skills…

What are you grateful for this week? How will you show thanks? Who is grateful for you? I am!

This post is part of Lexa Cain’s blog hop, Celebrate the Small Things, along with her co-hostesses L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Participate by emailing laura.6eg(at)gmail.com to request to hop on, then post your gratitude every Friday. Easiest blog hop ever! Thanks for coming with me on this journey of self-empowerment and collective awareness.

]]>1Kelley Harrellhttp://www.kelleyharrell.comhttp://www.soulintentarts.com/?p=89382016-11-30T21:31:49Z2016-12-01T10:35:09ZThroughout the Betwixt Series I’ve mentioned that spiritual chutzpah doesn’t necessarily equate to having solid coping skills. There pervades the idea that simply by virtue...

There pervades the idea that simply by virtue of having a good relationship with spirit guides, which is the foundation of successful shamanism, the ability to cope with life around that ecstatic component just falls into place. Not so, and any spirit guide worth its salt will say so.

Given that fact, what role does divination play in shamanism? For many it occupies a position somewhere between engaging spirit allies and sacred aspects of the self. Reading the signs of the world around us serves to inform free of ego projection. In fact, I’d even say the relationship formed with a divination tool is a spiritual ally. From a shamanic standpoint, when connecting with a divination system, only part of that bond is based on the symbolism. The rest is with the spirit of the system, itself.

However, in our modern use of them, divination tools such as the runes, tarot, I-Ching, bones, or other oracle don’t widely carry that spirit ally assumption. Defined as the act of reading the signs around us, whether they are time-tested, handed down ancient glyphs, or contemporary markings of chaos magick, the system we work with speaks to us. Many assume such tools tell the future, and in truth, that’s what we’ve all been fed through the Magic 8 Ball, playing Ring-Around-the-Rosy, and reading newspaper horoscopes. The reality is, oracles give us a distilled insight into the present, from as many open vantage points as possible.

Through the allure of a visual component associated with a philosophical concept illuminating some facet of human life, both brain hemispheres are engaged, and we suddenly realize choices for the future that were previously hidden. When we’re in this state of full awareness, we enter the theta brainwave, or god state.

That said, in and of itself, divination doesn’t solve everything. Years ago, I fell into a pattern of setting intentions to see the most likely outcomes of specific life dynamics through divination. It was an educational and often predictable exercise. After all, most of us never veer from the same life patterns, making us pretty damn predictable. However, despite having that vivid glimpse into my grounding and possibility, I found my stress level climbing higher.

I assumed that by knowing the potential outcome of a dynamic, I’d be ready for it to actually come into being.

It seems simple enough, yes? What I Want+ Potential for Manifestation = Ready for Manifestation. No. Not at all. Why? Because just because I could see the potential of what was coming didn’t mean I was capable of coping with what was coming. I was using divination in place of coping skills, which is a tragic mistake I now see other seekers doing all the time.

New Age culture has programmed us that our problems stem from not being able to see what’s coming. We think if we can just see what’s ahead, we’ll feel better. If we can divine the future, purely based on that satisfying glimpse, we’ll be prepared for it to arrive. We live in a fear-based society that wants to prevent aging, death–anything unknown that lies around the corner. However, the unresolved hurts of our past are largely what cloud our present. Tools like divination align the brain not just with itself but with deeply ingrained symbolism that cuts through the past fog, so that we can in the present come to better conclusions about our future. It doesn’t in any way make us ready for them. It doesn’t in any way give us the ability to deal with the changes ahead. We don’t get to skip the emotional and mental processes required to cope with change–even amazing, wonderful change. There is no substitute for drawing boundaries and holding them, gaining self-confidence, dealing healthily with conflict and confrontation, and coexisting peacefully.

This, of course, doesn’t mean that oracles can’t be tools to learn those things. It’s entirely possible to shift the nature of intentions brought to divination from ones of learning what’s ahead to seeking insight into how to best deal with what’s happening in the present. Yes, we can impact what happens in the future, though that impact comes through putting focused effort on the present. We can’t shape what hasn’t yet transpired by neglecting what’s happening now. Clean up the present to ensure the wanted future. Good intentions to make use of an oracle for support or shaping the future are, “My intention is to learn how to best create boundaries for myself,” or “My intention is to learn how to stand in my power in this conflict,” or “My intention is to learn what I can do now to improve my self-confidence.” In using divination this way, the health and wellbeing of self is put first, which is the only assurance any of us really have for the future.

The only true point of power is in the present. By standing empowered in the present, the odds of what we want to come increase radically.

The next time it seems that learning the potential of what may come brings more comfort than actually dealing with what is, consider putting the oracle down, taking a long, hard look in the mirror, and honing what’s most needed to know about self.

Have you ever wanted to know what the coming currents are? Have you ever thought that if you could know, you’d better prepare for them? A personal runecast provides just that, with insights to get in sync with the rhythm that’s head for you.

The Year in Runes–for you, about you!

From now through the end of February, for $80, get a Personal Runecast for 2017, including a thirteen-rune reading! For each chart, the runes are cast just for you. Your chart is as unique as you are! One stave indicates an overall theme for the year, plus one drawn for each month to indicate what dynamics are in play with each half-month stave. That’s right–this year’s Personal Runecast gives the bonus info of the half-month runes plus those cast just for you, and insight into what that relationship means for that time.

You will receive your Forecast as a 5-6 page PDF via email, including descriptions for the overall runic theme for the year, a description for the rune of each month, and suggestions for how to work with the life force they bring. Please allow a week after ordering to receive your Personal Runecast.

Not sure a Personal Runecast will have meaning for you? Check out The Weekly Rune, the column that I write based on the half-month rune and an intuitive stave. Together they inform on the life force available to use for the current week. Similarly, your runecast will provide valuable insight into 2017, and how you can best greet it.

Purchase one for yourself, or as a gift for someone else. Contact me for details, and to order a 2017 Personal Runecast!

]]>0Kelley Harrellhttp://www.kelleyharrell.comhttp://www.soulintentarts.com/?p=89252016-12-01T17:06:27Z2016-11-28T10:35:40ZFor the week of 27 November 2016 In which the game is on. Isa is the half-month rune through 13 December. Uruz is the intuitive stave, and...

Isa is the half-month rune through 13 December. Uruz is the intuitive stave, and Jera indicates the planet’s needs. Read right to left is Isa, then Uruz, followed by Jera.

The half-month rune is set by the runic calendar, and governs for a tad over two weeks. The intuitive stave (meaning, I draw it blind) indicates the life force most available to us, which brings the focus of the half-month rune into sharper focus for the present week. It suggests how we can handle these energies. The planetary stave indicates the state and possibly needs of the planet.

Following is a summary of The Weekly Rune. Read the full runecast for more details on how these runes impact human life force over the next week, and how to best manage the curves and twists.

Last week, Nauthiz forced us to face a deep personal truth, which in turn enabled us to meet that need. The middle of the winter trio–Hagalaz, Nauthiz, Isa–through its discomfort it motivates movement, which sets the stage for Isa.

Isa is the freeze before spring. It’s the long, dark wintry sleep that must happen in order for what must die off to so. Without that natural balancing of resources, what must be fed would starve. Isa, thus, is what must be fed.

Whatever is happening now, whatever truth was freed by Nauthiz, write it down. By May, when we reach Ingwaz, this new consciousness will have gathered all it can from the rime and be ready to burst onto the scene.

To get us started, Uruz is the life force most available to help us get that seed rooted. Still encased in ice, this sleepy but growing consciousness requires us to call on the most primal of feminine forces. Meaning “auroch,” which of course points to the Divine Feminine, Audhumla, we are again back at the beginning. Infer from that a need to self-start, to self-motivate, and having the elements in place to do just that at this time.

Interesting that Jera speaks what nature needs us to hear now, as its native time comes in another two weeks. It follows Isa, and exalts Winter Solstice. It would seem that Nature is asking us to begin our annual accounting early, at least where this new consciousness is concerned. What doesn’t suit growth, get rid of it, or groom it such that it does. Significant now is the motivation and support to work the process needed to set things in motion. A generally beneficial rune, enjoy its power to clarify what’s needed, clear what isn’t, and shed light on how to move forward.

]]>0Kelley Harrellhttp://www.kelleyharrell.comhttp://www.soulintentarts.com/?p=89292016-11-21T15:58:01Z2016-11-25T10:35:39ZMy weekly gratitude post, in the Celebrate the Small Things [ongoing] Blog Hop. I’m grateful for festive time with family and friends. I’m thankful for getting off...

I’m thankful for feeling like my brain is back, largely due to the aforementioned RX termination. Got some writing done and website created.

I’m very grateful to have smoothly migrated all of my websites from BlueHost to SiteGround, after three weeks of not being able to access email or any in-depth hosted components at BlueHost. Dislike, which ended on Like.

What are you grateful for this week? How will you show thanks? Who is grateful for you? I am!

This post is part of Lexa Cain’s blog hop, Celebrate the Small Things, along with her co-hostesses L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Participate by emailing laura.6eg(at)gmail.com to request to hop on, then post your gratitude every Friday. Easiest blog hop ever! Thanks for coming with me on this journey of self-empowerment and collective awareness.

]]>0Kelley Harrellhttp://www.kelleyharrell.comhttp://www.soulintentarts.com/?p=89162016-11-20T16:39:57Z2016-11-21T10:35:41ZFor the week of 20 November 2016 In which we’re alone, together. Nauthiz is the half-month rune through 28 November, at which point moves to the fore....

Nauthiz is the half-month rune through 28 November, at which point moves to the fore. Eihwaz is the intuitive stave, and Berkano (Berkana) indicates the planet’s needs. Read right to left is Nauthiz, then Eihwaz, followed by Berkano.

The half-month rune is set by the runic calendar, and governs for a tad over two weeks. The intuitive stave (meaning, I draw it blind) indicates the life force most available to us, which brings the focus of the half-month rune into sharper focus for the present week. It suggests how we can handle these energies. The planetary stave indicates the state and possibly needs of the planet.

Following is a summary of The Weekly Rune. Read the full runecast for more details on how these runes impact human life force over the next week, and how to best manage the curves and twists.

Last week, Nauthiz found us firmly entrenched in the Dead Time. The “not this” stave posits us in a betwixt state, specifically in that what we most need is what we most resist. If there’s a charm to Nauthiz, it’s that we become so uncomfortable in its presence that we accept the change. We accept the need. We fulfill what it needs. We struggle until we’ve exhausted anything but right direction. I know it’s not much comfort, but there’s that.

If being dragged into despair flips the necessary switch, so be it. If it can be flipped without that, write a book. We’d all read it.

Now, don’t freak out when I say this, but Eihwaz can help with that. Again, I say “can,” because it’s a choice. Eihwaz is the 13th rune in the Elder Futhark, and it portends a death, of sorts. That’s the freak out part. However, with the heaviness and tension in the air at this time, Eihwaz is a relief. It’s a signpost of required change. We forget that death is the ultimate healer. It is the turning point that signifies assured change. What’s the change? Focused alignment with the High Self, for one. This is the stave of realizing personal power and running with it.

Berkano, or what the planet offers at this time, can be a somewhat solitary state, also. It brings a time of reflection after a goal met. That phase of sitting with accomplishment and really beholding what has transpired–do it. Remember that Nature gets the job done, then it assesses the environment and elements. It pauses to check the weather, then gets to work with what can be done under those circumstances. Such is the reprieve that Berkano offers. Dues are paid.

With this week’s runes, we don’t have to understand each other. We don’t have to know each others’ demons, needs, battles, or victories. We just have to each do our part of the work, and give it to the world.

]]>My weekly gratitude post, in the Celebrate the Small Things [ongoing] Blog Hop.

I’m grateful for the collective awakening that’s happening.

I’m thankful for relatively benign medical results.

I’m thankful for a really great hypno session that helped me reconnect with needed support.

What are you grateful for this week? How will you show thanks? Who is grateful for you? I am!

This post is part of Lexa Cain’s blog hop, Celebrate the Small Things, along with her co-hostesses L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Participate by emailing laura.6eg(at)gmail.com to request to hop on, then post your gratitude every Friday. Easiest blog hop ever! Thanks for coming with me on this journey of self-empowerment and collective awareness.